After a year of investigating their industries, B.C.’s filmmakers, animators, visual effects artists and video game developers have created a strategy to tackle common human resources challenges they’re facing from increased global competition and technology’s rapid evolution.
The next steps for the BC Screen-based Media Industry Human Resources Committee, which was created in 2009, will be to reach out to industry stakeholders and solidify a game plan for, among other things, addressing anticipated talent shortages in key areas.
Richard Brownsey, one of 15 committee members, emphasized that B.C.’s screen-based media industries aren’t falling behind – yet.
“As an industry matures, it does have to take responsibility for looking at its human resource requirements,” said Brownsey, who is president and CEO of the non-profit BC Film.
“The success of our business comes down to the talent that we have to offer.”
A draft of the committee’s strategy notes that there are already labour, talent and experience shortages in some critical positions in the industries today, including senior leadership roles.
The draft also notes that few succession plans are in place to transfer essential industry knowledge to the next generation of workers. That’s especially an issue in film and television, which have the oldest employee demographic among B.C.’s screen-based industries.
Given the speed at which new technologies are being adopted to make films, video games, cartoons and other media, the draft strategy notes that training and education programs in B.C. must keep pace with industry needs.
“Graduates do not often meet employers’ requirements, and lack job readiness,” said the draft.
A full strategy will not be created until there’s further consultation with industry, but the committee, in its draft strategy, recommends the creation of a new industry-driven sector body that would co-ordinate how human resource issues are addressed.
The committee also recommends lobbying harder for improved labour market information from sources like Statistics Canada and the development of transition and succession plans for key positions and for those that are most at risk of shortages.
In addition, the committee wants to create an “employment brand” for B.C. and a related marketing strategy to attract more workers from outside the province.
Brownsey said newer sectors, like video games and visual effects, must address how employees can more easily assess or find their correct career paths.
“It’s not absolutely clear how you move through a career … how you come in and move from junior to management to senior roles,” he said.
By addressing various issues across a number of sectors, the committee is acknowledging that the industries are increasingly converging: an employee at a video game development shop could realistically find work as a visual effects artist.
Howard Donaldson, a committee member and a vice-president of Disney Interactive Games Studios Canada, cited Disney’s Tron: Legacy franchise as an example.
Both the Tron movie and video game were developed in Vancouver, with local video game development shops, film producers and animators sharing scripts and working together.
“As we see more convergence and we see new technologies evolving, we need to provide training to keep our talent pool up to date,” said Donaldson.
He noted that video game developers in B.C. are increasingly competing with other jurisdictions.
Quebec, where more generous public tax incentives are helping expand that province’s video game sector, is challenging B.C.’s position as Canada’s video game development hub.
“Our workforce is quite mobile; it pays well,” said Donaldson. “So, often, we find that talent goes to where the best jobs and best projects are.”
“[Workers] are in short supply all over the world, so it’s not something that’s unique here.”
The human resources committee plans to hold industry roundtables in January or February to get further feedback and endorsement of its strategy from members of the screen-based media industries.
“If we truly want to compete on a global level, I think we need to develop some stronger leadership in the digital media industry in B.C.,” said Donaldson. “We can’t coast along.”